Here’s some data anyone who is a bit curiously-minded on the topic of sustainability and business might find interesting…
When offered the choice between new and reused packaging:
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74% of our customers choose reused packaging
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26% choose new packaging
The option is offered to customers on our product page, where we have both reused refills and new refills available.
Are we proud of the people that choose reused? Yep.
Are we proud of the people that choose new? Also yep.
Here’s why:
The switch to Dirt is already a huge step forward in sustainability, compared to opting for conventional supermarket formats.
You might’ve made the decision to switch to Dirt because you like the design of the bottle, the performance and smell of the product, the convenience of delivery, or the economic value of the whole thing.
Great! That’s how we designed it.
We wanted there to be reasons far greater than ‘sustainability’ for you to choose our product. We are still obsessed with the idea that we’re the first choice because we’re the best at what we do - laundry. That idea comes from a deep seeded belief that everyone will be happy to make choices for the environment so long as they’re not expected to compromise.
But ‘the sustainability’ is inherent in the product design.
- Dirt is an ultra concentrate. That means we have stripped out almost all of the water possible, while still keeping the product a solvent liquid. It also means that the amount of packaging we use is cut down to ¼ on a volume basis alone. Less water = less packaging. That has knock-ons to our carbon footprint too.
- Refill packs, while not readily recycled, actually contain between 10-15% the amount of packaging compared to a plastic jug holding the same amount of liquid.
- The combined effect is that even by choosing NOT to utilise our reused packaging stream, you’re already reducing your packaging impact by 90% compared to the supermarket brands.
There is skepticism that we actually do what we say we do.
This skepticism didn’t exist 5 years ago. But neither did the idea that at a minimum, companies had to be making an effort to reduce their impact. The demand for sustainability is in its infancy, and it has led to a game of cowboys on environmental claims.
Greenwashing, defined by the ACCC as the ‘deceptive marketing practice whereby claims about how environmentally friendly or sustainable a product or service is, are represented or unsubstantiated’, greenwashing is sadly rife in all industries.
In fact, a recent ACCC survey of 247 Aussie businesses, showed a whopping 57% had promoted concerning claims about environmental credentials.
So apart from other reasons our customers may have for opting for new (like just getting used to the idea of completely reused) we believe that some of our customers don’t yet think the concept is real.
This got us thinking… What are we doing to help bring you on the ride?
Well, for now, we’re just going to lift the veil on it all!
Transparency in practice, not in principle.
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You’ll be seeing more BTS of our Refill Return program in action.
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You’ll always be offered the choice to choose reused, on products we have in stock. If you don’t see the option, you can assume we have no reused packs of that particular product processed.
- We’re going to continue to share the data. We’re snoopy data lovers, and we just think we might have some future members amongst the club.